It was Andrew Luck stepping behind center from the first second of the Indianapolis Colts’ rookie minicamp Friday morning.

It was the former Stanford quarterback looking the part.

Poised, in control. It was the first overall pick in last week’s NFL Draft filling the enormous void created by the March 7 departure of Peyton Manning, the team’s iconic quarterback.

Luck loosened up by lobbing passes to an equipment individual, then cranked it up a bit with tosses to a receiver and tight end.

At one point during an 11-on-11 drill, Luck took a short drop, looked to his left and lofted a pass that found rookie wide receiver T.Y. Hilton in stride down the left seam.

Coby Fleener, Luck’s go-to tight end at Stanford and his teammate again with the Colts, shrugged and offered one of those ‘So, what were you expecting?’ looks.

“He is the same Andrew, and he is as brilliant as ever," Fleener said. “We went out and he is calling plays that are 30 words long off the top of his head. He is amazing."

Luck is the new face of the franchise, and will be the primary reason the new regime of general manager Ryan Grigson and coach Chuck Pagano succeeds or fails.

Pagano was asked the type of nerves he sensed from Luck during his first practice.

“Zero. He is unflappable," Pagano said. “Mature beyond his years. If you listen to some of those play calls that Bruce (Arians, offensive coordinator) gave him, then I know why he is an architectural engineer.

“He is going to do great once he is done with this in about 15 years.”

Fourteen years ago, the Colts and their fan base were warming to Manning’s arrival.

The anticipation is for Luck to produce similarly. Pagano described Luck’s debut as “monumental.

We talked about it before. We saw the same thing happen 14 years ago and what happened after that pick.

“We feel great about him and everybody else feels great about him. He is a natural leader. It’s a great start."

As much as possible, Luck attempted to downplay the moment.

He admitted he still was tired after traveling to Indianapolis from Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday afternoon.

“Excited, sort of amped up," he said. “Definitely nervous as well to get out there and put your best foot forward."

Moving forward, Luck will return to Stanford after Sunday’s practice and resume pursuit of his architectural degree. He’s taking two classes and plans to participate in the school’s June 17 commencement ceremonies.

League rules prohibit Luck from rejoining the Colts until he completes the last of his final exams, which is June 7. That means the team’s most influential player will miss all 10 of its organized team activities: May 15-17, May 22-24, June 4-7.

Luck will be on hand for the June 12-14 mandatory minicamp.

To accelerate Luck’s transition from collegiate All-American to franchise cornerstone, Arians and quarterbacks coach Clyde Christensen have given him the offensive playbook and asked him to digest it as quickly as possible.

Yesterday would be preferable.

“We are going to throw everything at him," Pagano said.

That’s fine with Luck.

“I sort of like being thrown in the fire a little bit and just handling stuff," he said. “Like coach Clyde was saying, just throw a bunch of mud on the wall, sort of see what sticks, grab some more, throw it on. “I like that. Go out there and see what you can handle."

Instrumental in Luck’s offseason progress will be opportunities to hook up with veteran teammates while he’s completing his academic requirements at Stanford.

He already has talked with Reggie Wayne, Austin Collie and Quan Cosby, and hopes to chat with Donnie Avery.

Collie has an offseason home in Sacramento, a two-hour drive from Palo Alto.

Wayne spends his offseason in Miami.

“I’m sure if (Collie) has a chance to go home, we’ll get together," Luck said. “I won’t make Reggie come to where I am. I’ll go to where he is.

“You’ve got to put the work in no matter who you are, where you were drafted. A lot can happen. Hopefully, I’ll be the under center for that first snap (of the season). But I’ll work like I’m fighting for that job. Nothing is given to you.

“I’m definitely the bottom of the totem pole. I haven’t really done squat."

Mike Chappell cover the Colts for The Indianapolis Star and is a correspondent for Sporting News